Archiv der Kategorie: Nubia

A comparison of Nubian sandstones from a New Kingdom temple with ancient quarries on Sai Island

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

Uncovering the origins of the sandstone used in the construction of ancient monuments offers a unique glimpse into the interplay between natural resources as well as human craftsmanship and interaction. On Sai Island, nestled in the Nile between the 2nd and 3rd cataracts in Northern Sudan, lies Temple A, an 18th Dynasty Egyptian structure. The sandstone used in its construction, sourced from the island’s abundant deposits, has long piqued the curiosity of archaeologists and geologists alike. A recent study delves into the mineralogical and geological characteristics of these sandstones, seeking to uncover their precise origins and the choices made by ancient builders.

The investigation centered on sandstone samples taken from Temple A, and three nearby quarries. Using advanced analytical tools such as polarization microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and micro-Raman spectroscopy, we were able to analyze the stones in detail. The sandstone clasts were found to be composed predominantly of quartz, making up 90–95%, with minor contributions from feldspar and lithoclasts. Clay minerals like kaolinite and illite were present in varying amounts, forming part of the stone’s matrix. The stones also contained traces of iron-titanium oxides, which had undergone alterations over time due to natural chemical processes.

The study revealed that the sandstone used in Temple A was more finely sorted and contained smaller grain sizes compared to the samples from the quarries (Figure 1a-d). This finding suggests that the builders deliberately selected stones with uniform characteristics to ensure consistency in the temple’s appearance. The lighter color and moderate sorting of the temple sandstone contrast with the darker, poorly sorted stones found at the quarry and outcrops. This selective quarrying points to a sophisticated understanding of the properties of building materials and a meticulous approach to construction.

However, determining the exact source of the sandstone used in Temple A proved challenging. Despite the similarities in composition between the temple stones and the natural occurrences, the analysis could not definitively link the building materials to a specific quarry. We suggest that the stones likely originated from the same geological formation but does not rule out the possibility of multiple extraction sites within the island.

The presence of minerals such as kaolinite and illite in the sandstone’s matrix provided further insights into the geological history of these rocks. These minerals form under specific environmental conditions and suggest that the sandstone underwent stages of weathering and burial over geological time. Iron-titanium oxides, including ilmenite and its altered forms, indicated processes of chemical transformation as the stones interacted with water and other environmental factors. These transformations reflect the dynamic geological history of Sai Island, where tectonic forces and sedimentary processes shaped the materials long before they were quarried for use in ancient architecture.

While the exact quarrying practices remain unclear, the findings underline the care and intentionality that went into selecting construction materials. The builders of Temple A seemed to prioritize not only structural integrity but also the aesthetic qualities of the stone.

The study of the sandstone from Sai Island is a window into the decisions and practices of colonial Egypt in Nubia during the New Kingdom. Through understanding the material choices of the past, we gain a greater appreciation for the deep relationship between humanity and the natural world. Further investigations, including detailed geological mapping and isotopic analyses, could reveal even more about the origins of these stones and the history they carry.

Sai Island’s sandstone is more than a building material—it is a testament to the resourcefulness and artistry of its ancient inhabitants. Each grain of sand holds a story, shaped by eons of natural forces and, ultimately, by human hands. By unraveling these stories, we not only connect with the past but also deepen our understanding of the intricate connections between geology, culture, and time.

Back in the spotlight: the sandstones of Sai

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

I am very pleased to announce the next DiverseNile Seminar. On 26th November, our PostDoc Fabian Dellefant will talk about the sandstones of Sai. Some of you may know that we have already analysed them as part of the AcrossBorders project.

However, what was published in 2020 was a preliminary investigation of sandstone petrography using only polarization microscopy. This study offers a basic understanding, but the attribution of samples to distinct quarrying locations on Sai remained uncertain due to limited data descriptions and micrographs. Providing more detailed descriptions, data, and micrographs would greatly enhance the clarity and coherence of the sedimentary rock groupings, offering valuable insights into the provenance of the Nubian sandstones and the sourcing practices of the builders of Temple A.

Therefore, I am delighted that Fabian will present the results of his re-investigation whether the origin of the Nubian sandstones from Temple A can be specifically traced back to local quarries associated with the New Kingdom town.

Don’t miss this exciting seminar on the exploitation of sandstones and quarry work in New Kingdom Nubia!

Towards a better understating of taskscapes in colonial towns of Nubia: The case study of re-used sherds

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

Back in 2022, I attended a very nice workshop in Mainz: “Excavating the Extra-Ordinary 2. Challenges and merits of workings with small finds“. The proceedings of this event are now published and available in open access.

I am delighted that the book includes my contribution focusing on re-used sherds, presenting the case study from Sai Island.

I also address the question of lids – are these small finds? or pottery vessels? and how shall we deal with them? This also applies to some interesting findings in the MUAFS concession I have discussed earlier on this blog.

The main objective of my chapter in the Mainz volume, apart from advertising reused pottery sherds as extremely exciting (but also challenging) category of finds, was to highlight the concept of object biography and taskscapes which we apply to the Attab to Ferka region (Budka 2024).

I argue that reused ceramic sherds were chosen based on the colour, porosity, stability and hardness of the individual pieces which depend on the specific fabric (see Raedler 2007). Similar to the chaîne opératoire reconstructed by Kate Fulcher for painting materials from Amara West (Fulcher 2022) or by Giulia D’Ercole for pottery from the Middle Nile (D’Ercole 2024), the task of producing sherd tools can involve a number of different places, people and actions. The production process as well as the activities carried out with the newly created tool are well suited to consider tool kits and dynamics taskscapes in ancient landscapes and micro-contexts (for the concept of taskscape see Ingold 1993).

The technical choices are based on the cost (time and resources), availability and workability of the raw materials, in this case the fabric of the chosen sherd. The latter also determines the tools necessary for reworking a sherd (e.g., smoothing the edges or piercing the pottery). There are also important questions regarding what time of year the sherd tools would have been produced. Although most of the tools were most likely produced ad hoc, pottery making was probably mostly a seasonal activity. As such the making of sherd tools may also have been primarily carried out on a seasonal basis, in particular for tools used in pottery workshops.

SAV1W 1671 – a sherd from a basketry impressed Nubian vessel, reused in the New Kingdom town.

Particularly interesting are tools from the New Kingdom town of Sai which were made from Nubian style vessels. For example, SAV1W 1671 is a circular sherd with a central perforation from a basketry impressed Nubian cooking pot, presumably used as a weight. Although, given the lightness of the material, this piece could have been a token rather than a weight. In many cases, we can also assume that reused sherds have multifunctional uses.

SAV1W 1533, a sherd tool made from a Black-topped Kerma vessel.

Another soft Nubian example for a sherd tool is the rim sherd of a Black-topped Kerma vessel, SAV1W 1533. This object fits nicely in the hand, and it is possible to get a good grip, thanks to the rim and the rather soft material. The burnished surface suggests it was more likely used as a spoon rather than as a scraper.

These are just a few examples to show how relevant reused sherds are for questions relating to everyday life and activities. Altogether, in order for reused sherds to contribute to a better understating of taskscapes in ancient Egypt and Nubia, these intriguing objects need to be studied in a more integrated way.

References

Budka 2024 = Budka, J., Processing Reused Pottery from Settlement Contexts in Egypt and Nubia: Challenges & Potential, in Kilian, Andrea, Pruß, Alexander und Zöller-Engelhardt, Monika (Hrsg.): Excating the Extra-Ordinary 2: Challenges & Merits of Working with Small Finds. Proceedings of the International Workshop at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, 25–26 November 2022, Heidelberg: Propylaeum, 2024, 83–124. https://doi.org/10.11588/propylaeum.1382.c19771

DʼErcole 2024 = D’Ercole, G., Material meanings, technology and cultural choices: Pottery production in Late Bronze Age Nubia, in: Budka, J./Lemos, R. (eds), Landscape and resource management in Bronze Age Nubia: Archaeological perspectives on the exploitation of natural resources and the circulation of commodities in the Middle Nile, Contributions to the Archaeology of Egypt, Nubia and the Levant 17, Wiesbaden 2024, 207-221

Fulcher 2022 = Fulcher, K., Painting Amara West: The technology and experience of colour in New Kingdom Nubia, British Museum Publications on Egypt and Sudan 13, Amara West Research Publications 1, Leuven 2022.

Ingold 1993 = Ingold, I., The temporality of the landscape, World Archaeology, 25(2), 1993, 152−174. Raedler 2007 = Raedler, C., Keramikschaber aus den Werkstätten der Ramses-Stadt, in: Pusch, E.B. (ed.), Die Keramik des Grabungsplatzes Q I. Teil 2: Schaber – Marken – Scherben, Hildesheim 2007, 9−266.

Raedler 2007 = Raedler, C., Keramikschaber aus den Werkstätten der Ramses-Stadt, in: Pusch, E.B. (ed.), Die Keramik des Grabungsplatzes Q I. Teil 2: Schaber – Marken – Scherben, Hildesheim 2007, 9−266.

Co-presenting the MUAFS project at the SASA virtual conference 2024

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

I am delighted that today there will be a joint presentation by my dear friend and colleague Huda Magzoub and me at the SASA conference. Under the title “The Munich University Attab to Ferka Survey Project 2018-2023: Archaeology, gold, and landscape” we will summarize some aspects of our work in Sudan.

Since Huda is currently having very restricted internet, being displaced with her family in Sudan because of the current war, she sent me a video which I incorporated in the presentation. As much as it hurts not to be able to see her online or in person, it’s a wonderful feeling to present some outcome of our common work and to focus for a change on archaeology & scientific research despite of all the tragedies connected with the war in Sudan.

In our paper today, we will give an overview of the activities and results of the MUAFS project from its start in 2018 until 2023, with a special focus on new findings regarding ancient gold working in the region. In addition, modern gold working and the challenging of preserving cultural heritage in a remote area in times of war will be addressed. Thus, the presentation will follow a comparative approach to analyze gold working throughout the ages. This is especially relevant for Sudan as gold mining has been already in ancient times not just an economic activity but a testament to technological and cultural advancements. Gold has served as a catalyst for cultural evolution, economic prosperity, and sometimes conflict. We will address these aspects and thus highlight some features of the multifaceted story of gold in Sudan, tracing its influence from the dawn of civilization to the contemporary era. Finally, modern concepts of ancient gold working can be critically revisited thanks to the new evidence in the MUAFS concession, making the paper highly relevant for the general theme of the conference.

I am very grateful to the conference organizers for accepting our paper and for giving Huda as a displaced Sudanese archaeologists a forum to share her research in times of war.

Upcoming DiverseNile Seminar: „Tracks on the sand, ancient Egyptian mobility in the desert“

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

While the summer break is approaching, I am delighted to announce the next DiverseNile Online Seminar next Tuesday. Dr. Mohamed Osman will give a talk with the title „Tracks on the sand, ancient Egyptian mobility in the desert“.

Mohamed is the Director of the Coptite and Theban Desert Eastern Hinterlands survey project, Visiting Scholar at Humboldt University Berlin and Visiting Scholar at New York University. He is an expert about trade routes in ancient Egypt and Sudan. His book published in 2022 (Osman 2022) highlights the possibilities to trace Old and Middle Kingdom (3000 to about 1700 BCE) trade routes using textual evidence, archaeology but also satellite images.

His DiverseNile talk will be about the approaches and methods used when researching about travelling routes. Starting from the theoretical backgrounds and the GIS spatial analysis and how it can be useful, Mohamed will also outline how we can detect the errors in this analysis.

The upcoming DiverseNile Seminar will present case studies from both the Western and Eastern Desert. One particular example will be Mohamed’s discussion about the route between Aswan and Kerma.

I am very much looking forward to this talk presenting fresh research about patterns of ancient mobility in the desert!

Reference:

Osman Abdollah, Mohamed 2022. Trade centers and trade routes in Upper Egypt, during the Old and Middle Kingdoms. GHP Egyptology 36. London: Golden House.

Reconstructing the burial of Feature 50 in cemetery GiE 003

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

I’m thrilled and privileged to have become part of the DiverseNile team in November 2023. My primary role entails consolidating and organizing the data on the variability of funerary monuments excavated in the Attab to Ferka region of Northern Sudan during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. Our PI Julia Budka has given me the specific task of preparing the documentation of Feature 50 from Trench 5 in the Kerma cemetery GiE 003 (see Budka 2022). Interestingly, this burial shows many features associated with the Pan-Grave culture.

Different models of Feature 50.

The filling of Feature 50 comprised a diverse array of artifacts (see Budka, Rose, Ward 2023, 34), including pottery sherds, bones of at least one individual and three goats, beads, remnants of a wooden bed, alongside a mix of dense clay or mud fragments. The latter might have constituted a section of the superstructure wall surrounding the burial (cf. Irish 2007, 59, Figs. 2-3). Due to their dispersed nature within the tomb, not all of these finds were unearthed together or found within a single layer, necessitating their documentation either partially or separately. 

Using Metashape and Adobe Photoshop to rectify photos.

Because different parts of the same level were documented separately, I endeavored to amalgamate all these disparate 3D models into one comprehensive representation using Adobe Illustrator. This involved consolidating all the finds in a unified layout. Additionally, I utilized site photos, rectified them through programs like Metashape or Photoshop, and incorporated them into the combined models.

Using close-up photos for the finer details

I also leveraged daily site information, occasionally using the models as close-ups for finer details. Furthermore, throughout this process, I engaged in numerous discussions with Julia to ensure accuracy and completeness. 
In the end, through our collaborative efforts, we successfully integrated all elements into a single cohesive representation, meticulously illustrated using Adobe Illustrator.

I and Julia Budka discussing the different details of Feature 50.

The clarity of having everything consolidated sparked the idea of creating a reconstruction view using Adobe Illustrator. Inspired by this, I began exploring parallel cemeteries associated with the Pan-Grave horizon, including C-group burials (which are a bit earlier but nevertheless useful parallels). To enhance the visualization, I utilized Photoshop to craft different positions for the goat skeletons. However, despite these efforts, the original view remained somewhat unclear. This led me to consider creating a 3D model reconstruction using Google Sketch-Up, providing a clearer representation of all the features and finds.

Finally, I managed to develop a preliminary 3D reconstruction, but further investigation is needed. Interestingly, Pan-Grave burials, contrasting to Kerma burials, normally do not have wooden funerary beds.

My preliminary 3D reconstruction of Feature 50.

One last aspect: It’s incredible how something as simple as a color choice can drastically alter the way we perceive a scene. Chloe’s observation about the light blue floor of my reconstruction resembling a swimming pool was certainly amusing, but it prompted a smart adjustment to a grayish color to avoid any unintended connotations. These lighthearted moments amidst the serious work of archaeological reconstruction bring a sense of fun and camaraderie to the team.

References

Budka 2022 = Budka, J., Investigating Nubian funerary practices of marginal communities: new evidence from a Kerma cemetery at Ginis, Egitto e Vicino Oriente 45 (2022), 37‒62.

Budka, Rose & Ward 2023 = Budka, J., Rose, K. & C. Ward, Cultural diversity in the Bronze Age in the Attab to Ferka region: new results based on excavations in 2023, MittSAG – Der Antike Sudan 34 (2023), 19−35.

Irish 2007 = Irish, J.D., Overview of the Hierakonpolis C-Group dental remains, Sudan & Nubia 11 (2007), 57-72.

Regionality of stone quarrying in Nubia: the case study of a granite quarry at Ferka West

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

The most recent publication of the ERC DiverseNile Project focuses on landscape and resource management in Bronze Age Nubia. Here, I would like to present some thoughts on the regionality of stone quarrying in Nubia with a case study from the MUAFS concession.

Stone is a natural resource which has typically been associated with Egypt, being regarded as a raw material of little importance for Nubian cultures. However, the quarrying of stone played a role in the complex framework of cultural exchange of Middle Nile communities with Egypt (see Budka 2024). Whereas Nubian sandstone (quartz sandstone) only started to be used as building material in the Middle Nile during the Middle Kingdom, mostly for Egyptian fortresses, there is evidence for a much earlier use of natural- and dry-stone architecture, in both settlement architecture and funerary buildings (cf. Liszka 2017). Sandstone architectural pieces were also well integrated within Nubian monumental architecture (e.g., the columns and stelae at the eastern Deffufa in Kerma, see Budka 2024 with references). Some of the most important sandstone quarries during the New Kingdom can be found at Sai Island – we have studies these quarries already during the ERC AcrossBorders Project and will come back to the topic within the framework of our present project in the near future thanks to the expertise of our PostDoc Fabian Dellefant.

Granite is another important stone quarried in Nubia. While the most renowned granite quarry used for building projects and objects in ancient Egypt over millennia is located in Aswan, there are also a number of granite quarry sites in the Middle Nile. They are less well known and seem to have been used for a considerably shorter amount of time.

The quarry site of Tombos with an unfinished royal statue.

One quite famous example is the site of Tombos close to the Third Nile Cataract. The site includes a large quarry of magmatic rocks, principally granite and granitic gneisses, with known activity from the 18th Dynasty until Napatan and Meroitic times, particularly for statues and stelae. One particularly striking left-over in the quarry is the beautiful, although unfinished royal statue of presumably Napatan date.

There is no clear evidence that the quarry site of Tombos was used prior to the New Kingdom (Klemm, Klemm and Murr 2019, 28).

Another type of granite, pink granite, is available just south of the Dal Cataract in the MUAFS concession. This brings me to my case study: site 3-L-6 is a large red granite quarry at the foot of Jebel Kitfoggo in Ferka West – well noted by Vila and others during the 1970s survey (Vila 1976, 72−73). We visited the site during our 2022 survey of the MUAFS project – the landscape is fantastic and the pink granite very picturesque.

The site 3-L-6 at Jebel Kitfoggo is one of the highlights in the MUAFS concession area.
A large number of stone working traces can be observed at the pink granite quarry 3-L-6.

Fragments of unfinished columns in the southern part of the site testify to an intensive use in Medieval times for architectural pieces (Welsby 2002, 173).

The quarry was clearly used for architectural pieces like columns.

This is supported by evidence from settlement site 3-G-30, just to the north of 3-L-6, where Medieval ceramics were found on the surface. The building technique and general layout of these stone-built huts are also typical of the Medieval era.

Part of site 3-G-30 in close vicinity of the granite quarry.

Although several Kerma sites are also identifiable in the surroundings of 3-L-6, there is no evidence for Bronze Age or Iron Age use of the granite quarry at Jebel Kitfoggo.

It is interesting to stress that both Tombos and Jebel Kitfoggo were used for a relatively limited time span compared to other quarry sites. These examples illustrate regional patterns in quarrying in the Middle Nile, but they also show the need to consider political and historical circumstances when investigating the management of raw material and resources (Budka 2024).

References

Budka 2024 = J. Budka, Introduction. Regionality of resource management in Bronze Age Sudan: an overview and case studies, in: J. Budka and R. Lemos (eds), Landscape and resource management in Bronze Age Nubia: Archaeological perspectives on the exploitation of natural resources and the circulation of commodities in the Middle Nile, Contributions to the Archaeology of Egypt, Nubia and the Levant 17, Wiesbaden 2024, 19−33.

Klemm, Klemm and Murr 2019 = Klemm, D., Klemm, R. and Murr, A., Geologically induced raw materials stimulating the development of Nubian culture, in: D. Raue (ed.), Handbook of Ancient Nubia, Vol. 1, Berlin; Boston 2019, 15−38.

Liszka 2017 = Liszka, K., Egyptian or Nubian? Dry-stone architecture at Wadi el-Hudi, Wadi es-Sebua, and the Eastern Desert, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 103 (1) (2017), 35−51.

Vila 1976 = Vila, A., La prospection archéologique de la Vallée du Nil, au Sud de la Cataracte de Dal (Nubie Soudanaise). Fascicule 3: District de Ferka (Est et Ouest),Paris 1976.

Welsby 2002 = Welsby, D.A., The Medieval Kingdoms of Nubia: Pagans, Christians and Muslims Along the Middle Nile, London 2002.

Landscape and resource management in Bronze Age Sudan

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

I am very proud to announce the publication of a new volume of the ERC-funded DiverseNile Project: the copies of Landscape and resource management in Bronze Age Nubia: Archaeological perspectives on the exploitation of natural resources and the circulation of commodities in the Middle Nile, Contributions to the Archaeology of Egypt, Nubia and the Levant 17, Harrassowitz Verlag, 2024, edited by Rennan Lemos and me have just arrived and simply look great!

This volume is a direct result of many discussions held in the first DiverseNile seminar series organised by Rennan Lemos in 2021 as well as the second one in 2022, partly co-organised by Chloë Ward. The input of various colleagues working on several aspects of research extraction and management in ancient Nubia provided an opportunity to further develop an idea originally focused on gold into a collective effort to understand Nubian resource management in the Bronze Age. We are deeply grateful to all contributors to this volume, whose work illustrates the rich potential for a better understanding of how resources were extracted, managed, and utilised in complex ways in Nubia by various groups, including both Egyptians and indigenous communities, but also desert nomads. The table of content of the volume can be found here.

We are especially grateful to Manfred Bietak and the CAENL editorial board for accepting this volume for publication in their series and for organising the peer review. The publication was finalised in a difficult time for Sudan as a result of the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. As much as we are delighted to offer a further contribution to the investigation of ancient Sudan, we are also deeply concerned about the risks the people and the cultural heritage of Sudan are facing.

We fully support all our friends and colleagues in Sudan and would like to express our appreciation for their commitment to the preservation of the Sudanese cultural heritage in these extremely challending times. With the first anniversary of this terrible conflict and humanitarian tragedy approaching, it is timely to renew our concerns about and thoughts with the Sudanese people. Peace for Sudan!

In focus: Living at New Kingdom Sesebi

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

The next lecture in our DiverseNile Seminar Series 2023 is coming up: on Tuesday, July 4, Kate Spence (University of Cambridge) will be talking about her research in the temple town of Sesebi – “Living at Sesebi: investigating the houses of the New Kingdom town”.

Kate is an internationally well-recognised expert on New Kingdom urban sites and especially house architecture in Amarna and Sesebi. She has published seminal works on the topic and, in my opinion, one of her publications on the 3D form of Amarna houses (Spence 2004) is especially remarkable and extremely useful to be discussed with students in classes on Egyptian domestic architecture.

I am especially delighted that Kate will be giving this talk about lived experiences in New Kingdom houses at Sesebi for several reasons. First, because the site of Sesebi is a fantastic parallel for Sai Island and second, it has always struck me as an especially intriguing site with huge potential (especially for understanding settlement patterns in New Kingdom Nubia). Thus, thirdly, it is not only a great topic for the DiverseNile Seminar Series, but also of much relevance for domestic architecture in the Attab to Ferka region and our own research.

Kate’s recent fieldwork project at Sesebi (co-directed with Pamela Rose) reflects the new boom in urban archaeology in Upper Nubia since the 2000s, with an increase in archaeological fieldwork at sites like Amara West,Tombos, Sai, Dukki Gel and of course Sesebi.

The new work at Sesebi started in 2008 and concentrates on a re-assessment of the work by the Egypt Exploration Society in the 1930s. The most important result of this new mission is that structures and material remains, especially pottery, have been found which pre-date the reign of Akhenaten – the king who is normally associated with the site. It is very likely that Sesebi was already founded at the very beginning of the 18th Dynasty (Spence and Rose 2009, 39, 42; Rose 2017; Spence 2017) – maybe as early as Sai Island.

Join us next Tuesday at the DiverseNile Seminar and learn more about living at New Kingdom Sesebi through Kate Spence’s promising lecture!

References

Rose 2017 = Rose, P., Sesebi: Ceramics, chronology and society, in: Neal Spencer, Anna Stevens and Michaela Binder (eds.), Nubia in the New Kingdom. Lived experience, pharaonic control and indigenous traditions, British Museum Publications on Egypt and Sudan 3, Leuven 2017, 465–473.

Spence 2004 = Spence K., The three-dimensional form of the Amarna house, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 90, 2004, 123-152.

Spence 2017 = Spence, K., Sesebi before Akhenaten, in: Neal Spencer, Anna Stevens and Michaela Binder (eds.), Nubia in the New Kingdom. Lived experience, pharaonic control and indigenous traditions, British Museum Publications on Egypt and Sudan 3, Leuven 2017, 449–463.

Spence and Rose 2009 = Spence, K. and Rose, P., New fieldwork at Sesebi, Egyptian Archaeology 35, 2009, 21–24.

A Hyksos royal name scarab from Kerma cemetery GiE 003

Veröffentlicht am von
Antworten

As announced last week, the first preliminary report about Kerma cemetery GiE 003 in Attab/Ginis East has just been published (Budka 2022).

Today, I would like to discuss one of the highlights from this cemetery which was published in the EVO paper: a glazed steatite royal scarab with the name of a Hyksos king.

Scarab MUAFS 005. Photos: Rennan Lemos, editing: Marion Devigne, ©DiverseNile Project.

Found in Feature 4, the name of Pharaoh Y’amu is given on the bottom of this piece, MUAFS 005. Already on the day of its discovery, Manfred Bietak kindly helped remotely with the initial reading of the royal name of this scarab – many thanks for this! I am also particularly grateful to Karin Kopetzky, who provided detailed information about the dating criteria of this piece. The design of its back, head, legs, and sides all directly correspond to other known attestations of Y’amu (Tufnell 1984, 32, 35, 37, pl. 61: 3416, 3417, 3418, 3419; Ward 1984, 164) whose exact position within the sequence of 15th Dynasty rulers is unfortunately not clear (see Ben-Tor 2007, 107-108).

Scarabs are in general rare in cemetery GiE 003 and only two pieces have been found in our excavations. The context of scarab MUAFS 005, Feature 4, appears to belong to the later part of the Classic Kerma period, possibly contemporaneous with the Theban 17th Dynasty. As is known from other marginal regions of the Kerma empire like the Fourth Cataract area, our Hyksos scarab might have been circulating in Nubia for some time before ending up in GiE 003’s Feature 4.

The Hyksos king Y’amu has not been attested to in Nubia before the discovery of his scarab MUAFS 005 in GiE 003. Interestingly, in Ward’s sequence he would postdate the other Hyksos rulers attested to at Sai and Kerma as well as at the northern sites. Ward (1984, 164) placed Y’amu in the second half of the 15th Dynasty, but this sequence has been discussed and is not archaeologically confirmed (Ben-Tor 2007, 108 with references).

The textual evidence for contact between Kerma rulers and Hyksos kings has already been addressed from a variety of perspectives. In this context, the appearance of Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware in Nubia and of Kerma wares in Egypt, especially at the Hyksos capital Avaris, were also noted as possible indicators of exchange. Alexander Ahrens and Karin Kopetzky recently examined the appearance of Hyksos scarabs in the context of Kerma burials (Ahrens, Kopetzky 2021). Royal Hyksos scarabs are known from Ukma, Akasha, Sai, and Kerma, as well as several Lower Nubian sites (Aniba, Dakka, Sayala, Masmas, Faras, Mirgissa, Uronarti and Debeira). All of the kings mentioned on these sealings ruled during the early Hyksos period, and it is logical to assume that this was when the Hyksos engaged in direct trade with the Kerma kingdom (Ahrens, Kopetzky 2021, 295 with references and discussion). During the early Second Intermediate Period, the fortresses in Lower Nubia were under Kerma control, and the Hyksos were probably keen to establish trade and direct contact to achieve “continued access to resources and particularly to the Nubian gold essential for trade in the Eastern Mediterranean” (Ahrens, Kopetzky 2021, 295). The Lower Nubian fortresses have always been linked to gold mines and access to gold – recent work has stressed also the importance of Kerma gold working sites in Batn el-Haggar (Edwards 2020, 406-407; 415), and the same is likely for the Attab to Ferka region, especially for Ginis and Kosha. Could the Hyksos scarabs found at Ukma, Akasha, and Sai reflect not only international trade but also, indirectly, gold exploitation between the Second and Third Cataracts during Kerman rule? And could the same apply for the newly found scarab in Ginis?

It is tempting to assume that this new Hyksos scarab can be seen in connection to an intense period of Kerman exchange with the Hyksos kingdom, which sought gold from not only former Egyptian fortresses in Lower Nubia but also sites further south under Kerma rule. Sai’s importance during the Kerma Period might be linked to both the island’s strategic position and its location in a gold-rich region, making it ideal for supervising gold exploitation as we know it from the New Kingdom. Maybe the halting of trade with the Hyksos in the second part of the 15th Dynasty was one of the reasons why the character of Sai as a Kerman stronghold changed during Classic Kerma times (for this change see Gratien 2014; Manzo 2016). It remains to establish possible changes towards the end of the Classic Kerma period in marginal regions like Ginis – and cemetery GiE 003 with its use from Middle Kerma to Classic Kerma times and its close proximity to gold exploitation sites (as well as its connection to desert nomads presumably involved in the gold trade) has here lots of potential for future analysis.

References:

Ahrens, Kopetzky 2021 = A. Ahrens, K. Kopetzky, “Difficult times and drastic solutions: the diffusion of looted Middle Kingdom objects found in the northern Levant, Egypt and Nubia”, in M. Bietak, S. Prell (eds), The enigma of the Hyksos, volume IV: Changing clusters and migration in the Near Eastern Bronze Age. Collected papers of a workshop held in Vienna 4th-6th of December 2019, Wiesbaden 2021, 253-313.

Ben-Tor 2007 = D. Ben-Tor, Scarabs, Chronology, and Interconnections: Egypt and Palestine in the Second Intermediate Period, Fribourg, Göttingen 2007.

Budka 2022 = J. Budka, Investigating Nubian funerary practices of marginal communities: new evidence from a Kerma cemetery at Ginis, Egitto e Vicino Oriente 45, 2022, 37-62.

Edwards 2020 = D.N. Edwards (ed.), The archaeological survey of Sudanese Nubia, 1963-69: the pharaonic sites, Oxford 2020.

Gratien 2014 = B. Gratien, Saï I. La nécropole Kerma, Paris 1986.

Manzo 2016 = A. Manzo, “Weapons, ideology and identity at Kerma (Upper Nubia, 2500-1500 BC)”, Annali Sezione Orientale 76 (1-2) (2016), 3-29.

Tufnell 1984 = O. Tufnell, Scarab Seals and their Contribution to the History in the Early Second Millennium BC, Warminster 1984.

Ward 1984 = W.A. Ward, “Royal-name scarabs”, in O. Tufnell, Scarab Seals and their Contribution to the History in the Early Second Millennium BC, Warminster 1984, 151-192.